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As in English, most native speakers of the many different dialects of Spanish understand each other with relative ease or by listening just a bit more closely. But just a non-native learning English in New York City will struggle to understand a thick Scottish brogue, dialects of Spanish often feature differences that present challenges for learners.

There are countless linguistically discrete dialects in every country, region, and even city of the Spanish-speaking world, but whatever variety of the language you’re learning, it probably falls into one of these five broad categories:

Mexico is by far the world’s largest Spanish-speaking country, and also the heart of the Latin American foreign film and media world. More for these reasons than any inherent features of the language, Mexican Spanish is often considered one of the ‘clearest’ Latin American dialects, and it has greatly influenced the Spanish spoken in Central America and the rest of Latin America as well.

Mexican Spanish is known for its strong pronunciation of most consonants, tuteo (use of tú rather than vos), and the famously rich Mexican slang. As you move further south through Central America the language use will change gradually, and in Costa Rica and Panama especially will feature more of its own local quirks.

2) Español Andino (Andean Spanish)

The amazing Macchu Pichu, in Perú

Another Latin American dialect frequently described as ‘pure’ or ‘clear’, Andean Spanish is the language spoken by city-dwellers in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and parts of Venezuela and Bolivia. This collection of dialects is influenced by its European heritage as well as local indigenous languages like Quechua and Aymara. While it includes a wide variety of differing pronunciations, one feature learners will appreciate is that most consonants are firmly and prominently pronounced in the Andes.

Andean dialects have their own distinctive features, but most of them shouldn’t complicate comprehension for Spanish learners. In Colombia for example, the diminutive ending -ico is often used in place of -ito to make something small or cute, and each country, region, and even city often has its own trademark phrases and pronunciations.

3) Español Rioplatense (Spanish from Río de la Plata)

The Spanish spoken in the Southern Cone of South America is often described as sounding exotic and intriguing even to native Spanish speakers from other regions. The speech of Argentina and Uruguay (and to a lesser extent Chile, with its own distinctive but Argentinian-influenced dialect) is one of the most distinct dialect families of Spanish, and most learners will either love it or hate it.

The Rio de la Plata looking out towards the Atlantic Ocean; Uruguay is on the left, Argentina on the right, with Buenos Aires in the bottom right corner.

The trademark feature or Rioplatense is use of the /sh/ sound for the ll: when an Argentine is bringing chicken and onion to the potluck, they’ll tell you that “sho shevo cebosha y posho” (yo llevo cebolla y pollo). Rioplatense also uses the voseo, which means that in place of the perhaps more familiar tú, you’ll hear vos and its corresponding verb conjugations, for example, “Y de dónde sos vos?” (“And where are you from?”).

4) Español Caribeño (Caribbean Spanish)

Caribbean Spanish can be one of the most difficult to understand for learners who aren’t used to its speed, sounds, and many distinctive words and phrases. From the Caribbean coasts of Venezuela and Colombia, through Panama and coastal parts of Central America, and throughout the Caribbean islands, Caribbean Spanish is like its own little language in the region.

Caribbean countries where Spanish is spoken.

More so than in other dialect groups, Caribbean Spanish often drops pronouncing the /s/ sound anywhere other than at the beginning of a word, and /r/, /d/, and /b/ are also frequently swallowed up by their surrounding vowels: a well-meaning Cuban is likely to greet unsuspecting tourists by asking “De dónde eh uhte?” (de dónde es usted?). Watch out for even more confusing letter swaps on islands like Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, where /l/ often replaces /r/ in the middle of words, but go ahead and order the celdo con velduras(cerdo con verduras) for dinner, even if it sounds funny.

5) Español Ibérico (o Español Europeo) - European Spanish

Spanish in the mother country differs greatly from its Latin American cousins, but the Spanish of the Iberian Peninsula should still in most cases be relatively easy to understand for speakers and learners of other varieties. Some of its trademark features are the ceceo, often described as a ‘lisp’ in the way the Spaniards pronounce the soft c and the letter z, , and a noticeably harder, guttural pronunciation of the j that sounds like it would be more at home in Dutch or Arabic.

The majority of vocabulary and grammar differences in the Spanish-speaking world are between European Spanish and the Latin American dialects. Most native speakers know that words like zumo and jugo mean the same thing and that the first is preferred in Spain, but others may cause comical mix-ups. Other usage differences, like Spain’s favored vosotros for addressing groups of familiar people (instead ofustedes, which is reserved for groups of unfamiliar people), mark its distinction from Latin American Spanish.

Take a moment to consider what variety you’re learning, where it’s spoken, and in what parts of the Spanish-speaking world you may encounter communication barriers.

The good news is, the longer you keep listening to and speaking in the language, the greater your tolerance will become for understanding differences in pronunciation and usage. Don’t despair if your Mexican immersion trip leaves you feeling lost trying to understand Cubans, Chileans, or Spaniards — the only thing to do is keep listening, keep talking, and eventually you’ll find yourself able to converse with hispanohablantes the world over!